Wanted: Small Thought Sally

Summary: Small Thought Sally is an extremely dangerous con artist. She presents herself as a fun-loving, easy-going companion, but then leads her victims to intellectual decay and boredom with any activity that requires work and effort. Her crafty manipulations of her victims’ minds are as effective as any drug or cult in brainwashing people into living mediocre lives.

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Children who are not introduced to the joys of the intellectual life and encouraged in the development of intellectual habits are at a great disadvantage in the life of holiness. They face an increased chance of developing intellectual atrophy as teenagers. Intellectual atrophy leads to reliance on personal experience and feelings in order to interact with the world. While personal experience and emotions play important roles in human nature, they must be under the controlling influence of the intellect. Otherwise, they can be deceiving. For example, teenagers are often bored during the very experiences that actually have the most to offer them. A developed intellect guides us to carefully judge our emotional responses and subjective experiences before acting on them, thus not allowing them to cause us to miss out on valuable experiences because we consider them boring. Of course, misjudging an experience as boring is only one consequence of intellectual atrophy. Intellectual development contributes to deeper and better living on many levels. For example, those who have an active intellectual life tend to have more active and refined senses of humor. They are also more likely to know themselves better, and t understand human nature better. This knowledge leads to deeper and more understanding relationships. The intellectual world offers more sources for amusement and enrichment. The intellect enables us to know the truth about the world. The more we understand the world, the more we are able to find our part in it.

Most importantly, the intellectual life is important in our quest for holiness. Experience and emotions are important elements in developing a relationship with God. However, God is Truth, and we can only know Him through the intellect. God is love, and true love is not emotional but a choice of the will. It is a fact that plays out in all relationships. You cannot love what you do not know.

Parents do their children an invaluable service by encouraging an intellectual life. Teaching children to take school seriously (more seriously than sports or extracurricular activities, for example) shows that you make intellectual development a priority. Challenge your children to do more than what is necessary to get a good grade. Grades are only a partial measure of the value of an education. The image of teachers getting on the case of students who do not take grades seriously is a cliché. In my experience, I have had equal trouble with students who take grades too seriously, sacrificing true education in favor of an "A" on the transcript. These students and their parents short-change themselves as much as those who do not care about grades at all do. The important aspect of an education is the search for truth and the development of the intellectual skills that help us to find it. Another important thing that parents can do for their children is to encourage them to read. Books develop the imagination, an important intellectual ability, and engage the mind in analysis and synthesis. People who read a wide variety of material are less likely to be led astray by advertising or propaganda. They are more likely to be critical thinkers, reaping more enjoyment and personal growth out of their experiences. A habit of reading is also a source of continuous enjoyment. Learning should not be something that only takes place in school. One of the many lessons to be learned from the trend of home schooling is that families that learn together promote a love for learning in their children more effectively than any school could. Discuss deep subjects together. Participate in research, logical thinking, and debate together. Another great thing to do as a family is to take educational field trips together. If you are afraid your children will think this is boring or hokey, ask the children to become the experts on the sites you plan to visit and let them teach you. It is important that teenagers are encouraged to think and learn on a regular basis. It is also important that they see their parents doing the same.

Fortify yourself against Small Thought Sally with intellectual discipline and a love of learning. Small Thought Sally cannot stand against solid logic or authentic knowledge. Be very careful around popular entertainment and media outlets. These are her favorite hideouts. If she confronts you, do not trust her and do not give in to her. If her initial seductions fail, she will try to lure you with admonitions to “just relax and enjoy yourself” instead of thinking too much. As soon as you see her, report her whereabouts to the nearest intellectual.